


The Hidden Comforts of an Outdated Healing Table

by kitsunekurama, sand_ninja



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Keith finds some video messages, M/M, btw there are some mentions of medical procedures if anyone is uncomfortable around needles, but the author retains their right to change some things to fit the flimsy storyline of this fic, he is very hurt, hurt/kinda comfort?, ill update the tags as i go, set during and after season 4, so i guess theres a litttle bit of
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-31
Updated: 2018-07-13
Packaged: 2019-03-11 19:30:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,622
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13531047
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kitsunekurama/pseuds/kitsunekurama, https://archiveofourown.org/users/sand_ninja/pseuds/sand_ninja
Summary: Keith is hurt again.He doesn't expect to find comfort in an abandoned medical room in the Blade of Marmora's base.Inspired by a series of artworks over with @purpleturtledinosaur on Tumblr :)





	1. Chapter 1

 

 

Keith collapsed in some long forgotten medical room in the Blade’s base.

 

“Fucking hell,” He grunted, pulling a section of his suit away from the bruised skin on his arm.

 

"Shit." Keith's head lolled back and he sucked in a sharp intake of breath as waves of pain coursed through every bone in his body. He forced himself to stand up and shuffle towards the centre of the room, slumping onto the table that lay there. Reaching out, he pulled the mechanically attached screen down to his face where he could use his slightly less mangled arm to plug a medical examination programme into the table's system.

 

Keith had been in enough situations like this to know his way around the Galra technology, so when he saw an unfamiliar icon pop up in the far left corner of the screen, a glimmer of curiosity fought its way through his numbed state. At that moment, however, there were more pressing matters to deal with - like starting the shoddy Galran scan and heal programme. It was far inferior to the castle’s Altean magic healing pods, but if it could ease even a fraction of the pain he was in it would be entirely worth it.

 

Breathing out a sigh of relief as the programme activated, Keith flicked back to the opening display of the medical table. He motioned for the unknown icon to open up and he was met with a whole list of what appeared to be video files.

 

“Huh.”  

 

Keith, being unable to move from the table for at least a couple of hours until the procedure was complete, decided to hit the play button for the first file on the top of the screen. The Blade probably hadn’t put anything else to watch or do on their medical systems since the last time Keith used it two days ago. Keith didn't get his hopes up for anything interesting though.The titles of the files were just some weird stats. This was an old table, maybe it was some security footage from when the base was still part of the Galra Empire? Either way, Keith had nothing to lose and the first file began to play.

 

 

_Entry 1:_

_Recording time: 1:27_

_Users Present: 7_

 

_“Hey Keith!”_

 

Keith audibly gasped when Lance’s face popped up on the screen.

 

 _“Lance...”_ He breathed. This was the last thing he was expecting. Keith was utterly bewildered and had to blink back the sudden wetness that had formed in his eyes.

 

_“Hi Keith!...sup...Hello Keith...Greetings Keith...Hello m’boy!.....uh hi Keith?”_

 

All of them were there. All of them, plus some guy who looked like Pidge, if Pidge had suddenly grown 6 years older.  

 

_“So, we just found this super cool recording robot thing that can send these video messages to you, all the way across the universe, isn't that cool! I convinced everyone we should send you updates and things to keep you posted with the latest Voltron drama, cause I know you're gonna miss us sooooooo much, right mullet man?”_

 

Lance’s voice was loud and his face took up most of the camera, leaving little room for a view of the people behind him.

 

_“I bet he won't miss that nickname, Lance.”_

 

Keith was too shocked to do so much as even smirk at the way Pidge was teasing Lance. They were so relaxed. Keith wondered when this had been sent through. There was no date or time in the file name. No universal dating system, he guessed.

 

_“Shut up Pidge! Anyway, as you can see we have one extra on the castle as of like, yesterday. Guess who it is!”_

 

There was a brief moment of silence before old Pidge was pushed to the front of the group by a grinning Hunk.

 

 _“Uh, Hi Keith! I’m Matt. Pidge’s brother.”_  

 

Ah, so the older Pidge was Matt. They had collaborated with the resistance a few months ago for the first time, so Keith figured the recording must have been sent around then.

 

_“You know the one that went missing like 20 years ago!”_

 

_“I’m not that old Lance! And get the camera out of my face! I don't want Keith’s first impression of me to be of my dry ass space skin! Sorry, Keith..”_

 

Lance’s camera work was fucking awful but Keith couldn’t bring himself to care. If it made him motion sick he probably wouldn't even feel it on top of all the other pain he was currently in.

 

_“You know Matt, I have just the thing for that... Anyway, Keith! We've no clue how you're actually gonna receive these, but Pidge says they’ll pop up somewhere with the Blade. God, I hope they don't end up in some super top secret weapon activation file and end up destroying the universe.”_

 

Well, that system went a bit wrong somewhere. The only thing that could receive it was this old ass medical computer.

 

_“That won't happen, Lance, don’t be stupid. This programme is as primitive as they come. It’s not even an instantaneous comms system. Just some ragtag code I threw together that won't interfere with anything we actually need for communicating with the Blade.”_

 

_“Hey! It totally could from what you told me! Well, we hope you receive this without too much trouble. Maybe you can figure out how to send one back? Anyway, no matter what ends up happening, we hope you’re well, but eh, we’re yet to miss your ugly mug.”_

 

Lance smiled cheekily into the camera and Keith couldn’t help a weak quirking of the corners of his mouth. He was tired and in agony and he missed them all so much.

 

_“Lance! He’s by himself in space, be considerate! We do miss you Keith, and we hope that you are safe with the Blade.”_

 

_“I guess Allura’s right, we kinda miss you. But we’ll send you heaps of the messages to keep you up to date buddy.”_

 

Heaps of messages. Right. So all those files were video messages? There were so many!

 

_“Bye Keith!.....later.....Bye!....Farewell!”_

 

_“Alright so how do we send......”_

 

Keith watched as the screen faded from a shot of the castle ceiling and flicked onto a new screen. A fuzzy green and blue image appeared with the Galran questioning symbol imposed over the middle. Keith quickly checked back to see if the medical processes were still running and then hurriedly flipped back to the video messages and hit the play all button.  

 

 

_____________________________

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ill try to update kinda consistently but lord knows that's an empty promise.  
> i kinda wanna finish before the new season drops (hell yeah boys) but that too is a far-fetched claim
> 
> comments sustain me pls tell me if i missed any details or fucked up canon references


	2. Chapter 2

 

 

_Entry 2:_

_Recording time: 2:35_

_Users Present: 2_

 

_“Yo Keith!”_

 

_“Hey, Keith, What’s up?”_

 

Lance was holding the camera again, whirling it around so fast that Keith could barely catch a glimpse of Hunk’s form in the corner of the screen. Wow, he really is fucking terrible at this. No consideration for a motion sick viewer whatsoever. They appeared to be in an expansive green field with a perfect blue sky overhead. It was so familiar, so Earth-like, that Keith wondered for a second if they had taken a trip back to their home planet without telling him through the Blade’s main communication centre. Surely someone would insist on making a call to tell him?

 

_“He can’t answer Hunk.”_

 

_“Oh, right.”_

 

_“So it’s been like what... Four days since the last one of these?”_

 

Keith was suddenly hit with a delayed disappointment of not having received the messages as they came in. It probably would have kept him a lot saner to have this piece of them with him over the last couple of months.

 

_“Anyway, a whole bunch of actual Voltron shit has happened in the last few days, but you probably know about all that from the Blade... so, we figured we’d bring you out here.... in here? Hunk are we outside or inside?”_

 

_“I’m pretty sure we’re inside, Lance. The room has just been engineered to give off the illusion that we’re outside. See how you can see the outline of some of the panels on the ceiling where it's projecting the sky?”_

 

Ah, so it was just Altean technology at work again. Keith felt the niggling unease at the thought of being left behind in space wither away.

 

_“Yeah I guess, but anyway! Keith. We brought you IN here to see Kaltenecker! Isn’t she just gorgeous! Yes you are! Yes you are!”_

 

The shot swung around again, this time revealing Lance’s beloved cow surrounded by a little shack. She was chewing what looked like cud but was probably just super stringy space goo. The shack was no doubt one of Lance’s designs - built by him too if the hasty handiwork and sappy label with love hearts surrounding it was anything to go by. The materials looked like they had been caught in a tornado and dumped back in Kansas, but to Lance’s credit, it was somehow standing. Keith would give him that.

 

_“Keith! We figured out how to make homemade milkshakes from her milk and a little bit of carefully crafted space goo! They almost taste like they're from Earth!”_

 

Hunks voice started from behind the camera but the view soon swivelled around to face him.

 

_“It’s honestly amazing dude. Hunk is a genius! Anyway, we're gonna try and make some before we gotta go and do some training with Allura and stuff. Coran’s tryna put together some stage show so we need to get our finely-tuned flying skills down.”_

 

Stage show, huh? He was sure they all had a wonderful time. Especially Shiro. Keith smirked at the idea of Shiro having to act and perform in front of adoring fans.

 

_“We hope you're having a good time training with the Blade!”_

 

_“Don't get killed, Keith! However tempting it may-OW!”_

 

_“Lance shut up. Goodbye Keith!”_

 

_“Bye buddy!”_

 

“Don't get killed.” Keith repeated to himself. Huh. Before he could put too much thought into the last message the next file began to play.

 

_Entry 3:_

_Recording time: 6:15_

_Users Present: 3_

 

_“Hiya Keith. I know it’s only been like a day but I'm bored and Pidge and Hunk are being mean and won't hang out with me cause they're too busy building robot friends or somethi... OW! Pidge!”_

 

Again, Lance was apparently wielding the camera, pointing it towards the yellow and green paladins who were surrounded by a variety of electronics and mechanical parts, immersed in their respective projects

 

_“We are not building sex robots, also we’re right here hanging out with you. You just can’t be bothered helping us.”_

 

Keith saw the over exaggerated indignation Lance put on his face and Keith almost guessed the words he would say before they came out of his mouth.

 

_“I didn't even imply that it was for sex, asshole. You took the jump Pidge, you goddamn gutter brain.”_

 

God, Keith really missed them.  

 

“Fuck,” He didn’t have long to wallow in the emotions surfacing after months of feeling nothing. The table had finished the scan and had started to set to work on the most urgent of Keith’s injuries. Namely a huge gash on his upper thigh. A needle had just jabbed through his skin and injected what Keith guessed was a local anesthetic since it turned his entire left leg numb.

 

_“Hi Keith!”_

 

Keith drew his eyes back to the screen as Hunk’s warm voice spoke out. He made an effort to keep his eyes firmly on the screen until he could forget about the weird mechanical stitching situation happening on his thigh.

 

 _“I think Hunk is actually working on some kind of elaborate alien lighting system for the Voltron show that Coran is scripting.”_ Hunk's eyes lit up as he started to explain exactly what he was crafting.

 

_“It’s a self-sufficient, high performance, adaptable programme that can self-program to any set of lights that has the correct manual operating... Lance! Hey! Come back, I’ll stop being boring!”_

 

The camera swung around so that Lance's face and shoulders took up nearly the whole screen. Keith could barely see the forms of Hunk and Pidge fade into the background.

 

_“Nah, fuck them, let's go find Matt or Shiro. Someone fun who ACTUALLY WANTS TO HANG OUT WITH ME!”_

 

Lance threw his head around, shouting pointedly back at the other two. Keith heard very faint voices over the sound of Lance’s footsteps down the castle corridor.

 

_“Lance! Come back we love you!”_

 

_“Speak for yourself, Hunk.”_

 

 Even though the other two definitely couldn’t see him, Lance pulled a dramatically pained face and threw his free arm to his forehead.

 

_“Pidge, you wound me!”_

 

Keith smiled weakly. He would have most definitely scowled if he had been there in the moment, but what Lance doesn’t know won't hurt him. Keith made the excuse to himself that he was feeling so sentimental about Voltron because of all the pain he was in and drugs he was on. Realistically, Keith knew he could function just fine with higher amounts of pain than this and that the only drug in his system at the moment was the local anaesthetic. But whatever.

 

_“Alright, I think the last time I saw Matt he was in the kitchen..... Nope.”_

 

It was strange watching Lance from that awkward upward angle, giving Keith an excellent view of the contents within Lance’s nostrils. Lance navigated around the castle that Keith and all the Paladins knew like a childhood home. Keith tracked Lance’s progress through the kitchen and out again in his mind, all while watching Lance’s eyes searching for Matt or Shiro.   

 

_“Huh. Where could they be... Anyway, have you figured out how to send anything back yet?”_

 

Send...back? Keith could have been sending the equivalent of space letters this whole time and he missed out all cause of the weird mix of old and new technology in all these Galra ships? Keith experienced a moment of a fierce emotion he couldn’t quite describe, a mix of frustration and longing. He yearned to change the past more than anything at this moment, but he let himself sink further into the plush table-top in resignation.  

 

_“Pidge says it should be pretty simple cause she’s installed an update that includes a call back option. Not that we can pick up, I think. You can just send us messages.”_

 

Sure enough, in the top right-hand corner of the screen sat another Galran symbol that Keith recognised from the few official high tech communications the Blade had had with Voltron.

 

RETURN

 

Keith would definitely use the feature as soon as he was healed and explain how he had found the messages. Explain why he hadn’t seen them till now. Explain how he happened to use an old medical room after having... Maybe he wouldn't tell the whole story in the message.  Keith’s thoughts were interrupted by the joking cadence of Lance’s voice from the screen.

 

_“Also I have a question about the Blade... Oh, maybe Matt’s in here? Ah, nope. Oh - yes, a question about the Blade.”_

 

Lance looked straight into the camera with that mean little smirk that meant he was joking around. Keith had seen it so many times he knew anything Lance said when he wore that face was to be taken with a pinch of salt or completely ignored. But he had no choice but to pay full attention to the bullshit Lance was about to spout from his ungodly mouth.

 

_“Do you always have to wear those... costumes? "_

 

He drew out the word costume.

 

_"I mean, they look fucking rad with the cute hoods and all, but like, your old jacket is so iconic, you know?  I don't even think half the people you’ve ever met would recognise you without that nifty lil leather crop monstrosity.”_

 

Keith spluttered for a couple of seconds before his indignation had settled down enough for him to have a long hard think about whether his precious jacket was really that bad. Keith loved that jacket. He had chosen it himself the first time he went clothes shopping with Shiro. He bought it super big so that it would fit him ‘when he grew up and could ride a motorbike’.

 

_“Well anyway, it looks like Matt and Shiro also don't want to hang out with me. They're probably making out somewhere....”_

 

Keith’s eyes widened for a split second before Lance cut in almost as though he had read his mind across time and space.

 

_“They're not together! You're not that out of the loop.”_

 

“Jesus fuck, Lance.” breathed Keith. Way to keep someone on their toes. Lance’s voice trailed off into a softer more... personal tone? Keith had never heard Lance speak like that before.

 

_“Shiro seems kinda weird around him though. I don't know if its good weird or bad weird, but it’s weird considering they kinda lived together on a spaceship for a year.”_

 

It was only a short comment, but enough for Keith to hear a different more analytical side of Lance.

 

_“Anyway, you probably don't wanna hear me speculate by myself so, bye! Send something back!”_

 

Keith did want to hear Lance’s speculations, probably to both of their surprise. Before Keith could properly put any thought into the way Lance had sounded towards the end there, the next file started playing.

 

_Entry 4_

_Recording time: 17:22_

_Users Present: 3_

 

_“Yo, it’s been literally 20 minutes but I found Shiro and Matt!”_

 

Lance talked right into the camera and Keith felt the intensity of his personality blast through the screen itself.

 

_Turns out they weren’t making out, just training in the training room. Dude, I’m gonna turn you around so you can see.”_

 

The shot swung around until Lance had it aimed shakily through the observation window that looked out over the training room. Two figures were locked in a heated combat. One dominating with a formidable combination of sheer strength and unadulterated power, and the other doing their best to dodge the heavy attacks and feint enough to land a hit.

 

_“Shiro is totally badass, like, even though Matt has all these cool gadgets and things from the resistance, Shiro is still kicking ass! Even without his arm turned on!”_

 

Keith heard a muted clunking noise as Lance set the camera down on a ledge, finally stabilising Lance’s shitty camerawork.   

 

_“Matt is still kinda able to hold his own, don't you think? I feel like people might underestimate him cause he's so skinny and... I don't know, kinda bookish? But he’s not letting Mr Robo arm throw him about too much. “_

 

Matt and Shiro disengaged from each other and Matt immediately collapsed to the floor in a spread-eagled position on the cold metal.

 

_“Oh look, they're finishing up.”_

 

Keith realised the whole time he had been looking through a screen, as a barely noticeable fogginess slid away so that there was now no barrier between the training room and the balcony.

 

_“Hey guys! Say hi to Keith!”_

 

_“Hello Keith.”_

 

Shiro’s voice came a bit shorter than usual but other than that, you wouldn't have been able to tell he had been fighting intensely just moments before. Matt, on the other hand, wasn’t so lucky.

 

_“Oof... uh, Hey Keith! Shiro... Holy fuck, I’m spent”_

 

_“Watch your language, Matt. No wonder Pidge has such a potty mouth”_

 

Matt scrunched up his eyes and stuck out his tongue at Shiro.

 

_“Lance, has Keith used the reply function yet?”_

 

_“Not yet Shiro, but we only just told him about it like, 20 minutes ago, so maybe he hasn’t figured it out yet or is too busy”_

 

_“Oh, alright. You want to spar, Lance?”_

 

_“With you?”_

 

Lance sounded very surprised. Had he never trained with Shiro before? Lance hadn’t really trained with Keith either. But Keith knew that even before he had left, Lance’s hours on the training log had almost rivalled his own, and soared far above Hunk’s and Pidge’s. Keith’s mouth pulled down into a frown as he considered this. That was a lot of hours spent alone.

 

_“Don't do it Lance. He’ll make you cry. And then throw up from exhaustion.”_

 

_“Heh, I’m totally doing it now just to show you up, Matt. Just let me run down. I’ll leave the camera up here and we can swap jobs. You and Keith can watch me kick Shiro’s ass.”_

 

_“Ha! Good luck man, I hope your specialty is being good at literally everything cause that's the only way you're going to beat this madman.”_

 

The camera shuddered for a second, presumably as Lance had slammed his hands down on the ledge in challenge.

 

_“Good thing that’s exactly my specialty then, isn't it Matt?”_

 

Keith could feel the wink in Lance’s voice. The sound of Lance’s heavy footsteps faded out as he ran from the room. A few quiet moments passed in which Matt left the training centre and Lance burst through the door wearing a training suit.

 

_“Right, Shiro what’s your weapon of choice?”_

 

Leaving no time for an answer Lance summoned the weapons table and fitted two pistols of differing capabilities into the belt adorning his hips.

 

 _“I'm going for the stun guns, and, of course_ , _these guns.”_

 

Somehow, Lance had winked straight at the camera while kissing both of his barely existent biceps. Keith scoffed out loud to himself and then blushed, embarrassed at how real this was all beginning to feel. Lance... The others.... He missed their silly mannerisms and jokes and, well, their humanness. Keith thought he had left Voltron behind. He had already taken the jump away from them, but a few video messages and some stupid ass wink from Lance, and he felt like boarding an escape pod and flying to see them immediately. Before Keith could impulsively attempt to do just that, a voice from behind the camera interrupted him.

 

_“Hi Keith, We haven’t met before, but I reckon this is going to be a bit of a laugh, don't you think? Lance is going to get absolutely throttled in there.”_

 

Keith somehow felt like he needed to prove Matt wrong. Lance wasn’t that bad! But, well, yeah. Matt was kind of right. Shiro’s a lot better than 'not bad', but it didn't stop Keith from wanting Lance to show Shiro up, just to spite Matt. Nothing against the guy but Keith felt almost protective of his teammate’s abilities as a soldier.

 

_“I’ll stick with my own fists, thank you very much, Lance.”_

 

_“Your loss, big guy.”_

 

With that, the two got into it. Lance jumped back gracefully to put his preferred distance between himself and his opponent. Shiro didn't leave him any time to prepare any sort of attack though, following close behind and throwing a few precise jabs at Lance.

 

Dodging Shiro’s attacks, Lance managed to sort of crawl away enough to get a couple of shots in, both landing accurately. One on Shiro’s normal arm and the other stunning his right leg. The guns they used for combat training didn't incapacitate their victim like Lance's bayard normally would. They only stunned for a brief amount of time in order to keep the fights moving. Despite it not being a finishing blow on Lance's part, the sudden loss of control over Shiro’s right side bought Lance the few seconds he needed to stand up and move quickly enough to land a couple of hits of his own.

 

The fight continued in a similar fashion for a while: Lance using his speed and precision to slowly wear down Shiro, and Shiro using his insane strength and vast experience to predict and stop Lance’s attacks. They moved out of the camera’s frame a few times but Keith still found himself lost in the movement of their bodies. He noted the fluidity of Lance’s movements and the stark contrast of Shiro’s strong and sharp attacks. Keith could feel himself slipping into a bit of a daze as Lance pulled both guns out at once to take up a steady fire and reload pattern, keeping Shiro on defence so Lance could catch his breath. Keith was vaguely aware of another needle piercing his leg and attributed his sudden dizziness to whatever drug was being injected. Before he could slip too far away a voice pulled him back through to a semi-lucid state.

 

_“They really miss you, Keith. I don’t know you, and I didn't know the team before you were gone but... something's missing. I hope you come back to them.”_

 

Matt’s voice was quiet and profound and Keith was tired and hazy and he really wanted his team back. When Matt didn't speak again, Keith, trying to pull himself back into a sober mind space, focused in on the little details of Lance and Shiro fighting. The exact position of Shiro’s feet, the sweat dripping off their brows, the pinpoint accuracy and strategy behind Lance’s shots.

 

The two continued for a while, Lance lagging further and further behind, but by no means giving up. After two or so minutes Lance fell to the ground and put his hands up in a surrender.

 

_“Fuck Shiro...you're really holding no bars, eh? One more rematch and then I’m going to try to get Pidge to see whether Keith really can reply again.”_

 

The ‘one more rematch’ consisted of Lance literally running from Shiro while placing strategically aimed stun shots over his shoulder to slow Shiro down.

 

_“Wow, Lance is really handy with that gun. Shiro’s been stunned so many times it’s a wonder he’s still standing. You wouldn't think a stringy guy like that would be much use up close either but look at him go!”_

 

“Ha.” Keith actually huffed out loud. Lance had perfected the act of an utterly and entirely harmless guy. But one look at him on the battlefield and anyone could tell he was a deadly machine. Completely comfortable protecting himself, and absolutely capable of killing without hesitation and with devastating efficiency.

 

All that being said, Lance had, admittedly, just been knocked out, and was now held up by Shiro’s mechanical hand around his throat.

 

_“Shiro! What are you doing? Let him down, you idiot!”_

 

Matt’s voice was panicked and desperate. A loud bang and a jolt of the camera told Keith Matt had probably just slammed the balcony ledge with his hands.

 

“ _Shiro!”_

 

Shiro shook his head and dropped Lance to the ground where he slumped over like a ragdoll who had lost it’s stuffing. Shiro looked genuinely confused and slightly guilty.

 

_“Lance! Are you ok?”_

 

_“Just... ha... peachy Shiro!”_

 

Lance attempted a weak smile from the ground, which he couldn't seem to drag himself up from.

 

_“But ugh... I might take a quick break. Not that you won! We’re just pausing, for a while.”_

 

_“Shit Shiro, what the fuck were you thinking?”_

 

As the camera was picked up and swung around, Keith was met by a worried looking Matt.

 

_“I’m gonna go down and help Lance to the med bay. Jesus Shiro, what the fuck.....”_

 

The file cut off, and Keith’s hazy mind tried to process the events that had just occurred in front of him.

 

_________________________________

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sum more
> 
> kudos r great comments r great any feedback is great  
> thank u @kitsunekurama for betaing even tho ur not in the fandom what a legend


	3. Chapter 3

Fuck, was Lance alright? Shiro hadn't looked like he was all there after it happened. Before Keith could read too much into what had just happened with Shiro, the next file loaded in. 

 

_Entry 5:_

_Recording time: 4:12_

_Users present: 2_

 

It was just Hunk and Lance in the frame again, this time with a faint hum and the clacking of something technological in the distance, which Keith assumed was Pidge working somewhere nearby. They fell out of shot for a second as Lance brought the camera close to his chest for a second before leaning back from it to turn and sit on a couch.

 

 _“Yoo Hoo! It’s me, buddy! It’s been a while yeah?”_ Lance relaxed into the couch easily, throwing a leg over Hunk who was already settled in.

 

 _“Last time was what... When I trained with Shiro?”_ Hunk grimaced towards his lap and nodded silently.

 

 _“Never doing that again let me tell you! Wasn’t bad enough for a healing pod but look at this beauty he’s left me!”_ Lance tilted up his chin and pulled the collar of the black training suit he was wearing away from his skin to reveal an impressive scar surrounded by bruising running around his throat. Keith’s fingers twitched towards his own neck in sympathy but he couldn’t quite muster up the energy to move his arm all the way up.

 

 _“Don’t you worry though, Shiro feels terrible and the bruising is from another mission. Impressive, huh? That mission came along with a few other cool scars.”_  Lance settled back into the couch even further, stretching his arms up and over the back of the couch and smirking into the camera.

 

 _“Lance, three of them are on your buttcheeks.”_ Hunk led his head fall into his hands and glanced through his fingers at the overly ‘suave’ paladin.

 

 _“And?”_ Lance’s voice raised in defence.

 

 _“Scars are cool Hunk! The ladies love em.”_ This time when Lance winked it was at Hunk. Keith was definitely going to keep a tally of the number of times Lance winked in these messages from now on.

 

Despite the lighthearted nature of the whole exchange, however, something about that comment didn't quite sit right with Keith. Maybe it was the fact that team Voltron had been meeting so many different aliens, different ‘ladies’, as Lance would kindly interject,  and exploring new territory without him. Keith often put up a hard exterior but the missions where Voltron just had to save grateful citizens from minor threats were his favourite. The relief and joy felt by the newly freed crowds were contagious, and Keith always felt better after an assignment went right. Those simple missions were always something to look forward to.

 

Yeah, Keith was probably just missing the fun and carefree tasks he used to do with the team. Missing meeting new aliens. Missing the team...

 

Well, whatever it was, the drugs in his system were probably increasing the emotion tenfold, so Keith did his best to suppress his thoughts, and tried to tune back into the video message.

 

 _“Anyway, it’s been like 6 Vargas or whatever since we talked to you and uh, are you ok? We haven't received anything back and the Blade hasn’t mentioned you.”_ Lance had moved from his earlier position and was hunching in towards the camera bit. Hunk carefully raised a warm hand to rest on Lance’s shoulder. He spoke in a softer voice than usual.

 

_“Lance, it’s like we said we don’t know how...”_

 

 _“Yeah yeah,”_ Lance shrugged Hunk’s hand away agitatedly,

 

 _“We don’t know how he will receive them or whether he can even return them. But I trust Pidge, alright! She’s never let us down before.”_ Lance looked past the camera, presumably at Pidge, and his brow furrowed.

 

 _“He’s probably fine. It was his decision to leave and he’s lived alone for like his whole life.”_ Hunk tried to replace his hand on Lance’s shoulder before hesitating when Lance recoiled again.

 

 _“One year in the desert isn't his whole life and...”_ Keith felt guilt welling up in his stomach and throat. They were pretty worried, huh? Somehow, Keith hadn’t ever really thought his teammates had reason to worry about him, especially not Lance. Him leaving the team had been the best course of action right? His teammates seemed fine with it at the time, and he had accomplished so much more with the blade! But perhaps Keith’s leaving had caused more than a shuffling of the lions?

 

 _“Ugh yeah, I guess you’re right. He did leave us on purpose.”_ Lance sighed before sinking right into the couch. He looked away from Hunk with an expression Keith’s drug-addled brain couldn’t identify. Before Keith knew it Lance was staring directly down the camera as though he could see Keith right then and there.

 

_“But you're coming back soon yeah? Soon as we fuck up the Galra empire beyond repair?”_

 

 _“Of course he is, but you're forgetting the reason you made the call, Lance.”_ Hunk prompted.

 

 _“Oh yeah!”_ The light behind Lance’s eyes returned just like that.

 

 _“Keith check out this fucking_ amazing _video of the Voltron stage show.”_ Lance sat forward and tucked his legs up beside him on the couch.

 

 _“I promise you will piss your pants laughing. We’re gonna format the video footage and send it through this thing. You’re probably gonna want to sit down buddy.”_ Lance was leaning into Hunk excitedly wringing his hands and looking to his friend for support.

 

 _“Just thinking about it makes me giggle,”_ Hunk cracked a huge grin, setting both Lance and Keith at ease in one foul swoop.

 

 _“Coran was like, Coran was like squared during the show. He was so into it he couldn’t see how horrible it really was,”_ Lance had started laughing through his words.

 

 _“Although I will give him that the Voltron coalition increased in size exponentially”_ Hunk managed a pretty awesome serious face before promptly breaking into a huge smile.

 

_“The universe needs exposure to quality entertainment if this is what’s causing excitement.”_

 

_“You're not wrong Lance.”_

 

 _“Anyway, we will leave you to enjoy the beautiful, the amazing, absolutely spectacular... Voltron show!”_ Lance gesture wildly with his hands before reaching forward and covering the shot with his hand. A giggle from Hunk came through before a loud clatter.

 

_“Fuck... it was meant to cut off there but I missed the...”_

 

Keith was smiling faintly but struggling to keep his eyes open. Whatever was in those needles was working wonders for the pain though. He could barely feel anything. The next file started and Keith didn't have the energy to pause it for a nap. Well, he was just going to have to come back and watch some of these again when he could actually function.

  


_Entry 6:_

_Recording Time: 48:54_

_Users Present: 0_

 

A bright white screen flashed, waking Keith up a fraction before it faded to a more manageable hue. A low-resolution image of what looked like some sort of arena flashed up. From what Keith could hear there was no sound accompanying this clip. There was a massive crowd filling the stands, pulsating with the movements of the various aliens that made it up. A hectic display of fireworks exploded haphazardly in the middle of the arena, looking somewhat unintentional. A large screen with Coran’s somewhat flustered looking face appeared superimposed over the crowd. No sound came through but Keith could guess from a crude lip reading and general context that Coran was giving a grand opening for the Paladins and the lions. As Coran continued to speak his team... the Paladins of Voltron came out one by one into the area, each with a unique entry followed by their lion. Keith nearly managed a snigger at the absolute distaste on Pidge’s face as she walked out with the title “Science Whiz Pidge” displayed behind her. But Keith could feel his grasp on consciousness slipping, and the final image that burned into his lids before they became too heavy to hold open was the ridiculous sight of Lance twirling about on a red ribbon.  He only wished he could have stayed awake long enough to giggle at the sight on Shiro having to act like a cartoon-esque hero in front of millions of fans.

  


_____________________________________________

  


_Entry 7:_

_Recording time: 1:12_

_Users present: 2_

 

 _“YOOOO!”_ Keith startled awake at the loud noise.

 

 _“So yeah that was it! Did you like my rope dancing? I practised for ages. Blue had to rescue me so many times.”_ Lance’s face filled the screen. A dull ache all over Keith’s body had returned. Keith glanced over at the time. Man, whatever those pain meds were, they had worn off super fast. Maybe his half-human biology was fucking with the calculations of the old Galran tech.

 

 _“Yeah that was our final show, as you can see, things got a little... hectic at the end there”_ The two grinned at each other before looking back to the camera.

 

 _“Something Coran ate or some shit.”_  Lance waved his hand dismissively.

 

 _“I can’t remember the details, but anyway, what did you think? I know you must have just loved Allura’s interpretation of you.”_ Keith tried to remember back to the show, but he honestly couldn’t remember a single detail beyond a giant crowd and embarrassing titles. He would definitely be going back and watching it to see the shit that apparently went down.

 

 _“Keith, she honestly became you in between shows as well!”_ Hunk was laughing through his words and leaning into an equally facetious Lance.

 

 _“All the pouting and brooding and angsty knife spinning... She’s a method actor, to say the least.”_ Keith knew Lance was teasing but he felt somewhat defensive anyway. Knife spinning was fun and harmless and helped him stay focused! Well mostly harmless. A few trips to the nurses' office at the Garrison for plasters might say otherwise.

 

 _“Well after Coran’s mishap we won’t be doing any more of those, but the coalition is getting pretty big, and I think the broadcasting of old shows should just about do the trick now.”_ Settling back into the couch Hunk looked more content and relaxed than Keith had ever seen him while in space. It was a good sign. Things were on the right track for the Paladins. Well, things had been on the right track for the Paladins. Keith glanced back down at the bruising around Lance’s neck and felt a spike of dread and guilt low in his stomach.

 

 _“Anyway, Keith, we hope you enjoyed it! I expect a reply with an in-depth analysis of the complexity of each of our personas and the impact this may have on the current political climate of- OW!”_ Hunk punched Lance in the shoulder, sniggering.

 

 _“Shut up Lance. But yeah Keith, we hope to hear from you! Pidge has spent a couple hours refining the reply feature so we think it should be super easy to send a quick message.”_ Keith wished he could have discovered this whole thing earlier.

 

 _“Don't miss us too much mullet brain!”_ Lance unfolded from his crease in the couch and leaned towards the camera. A soft thumping came through the speakers as the camera spun to face Lance’s feet.

 

_“Do you think that Shiro....”_

 

A black loading screen popped up. It looked like the machine was having a bit of trouble loading in the next few files. Before Keith could bask in the easy thought the silence granted him for too long, he was suddenly hit with the realisation that no one knew where he was, and he had other post-docking duties to attend to. Despite wanting to stay and watch every single one of the messages, he probably needed to talk to a few people about his last mission, and he would no doubt have a lot of stuff to get caught up on. He should let the blade know he was alive, and maybe convince them to let him board a ship right away to go and see his team?

 

Keith tried to sit up slightly to pause the playthrough. But try as he might, Keith seemed to have no control over his body. He could only watch as more mechanical arms started to apply various creams, inject unknown drugs and run an assortment of scans, while the screen loaded up the next file. Keith fought for only a little while longer. There was nothing he could do except hope someone would stumble across him soon or that the drugs wore off super fast. Accepting his fate as bedridden for the next wee while, Keith settled back down as much as he could without moving, to continue to enjoy his teams’ antics.

  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ohohhohoh regular schedule she said.  
> see ya
> 
> hope yall enjoy this late-ass short-ass weak-ass chapter.  
> Kudos and comment for my continued long periods of procrastination before inspiration strikes and i write something all in one sitting.


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